


The Wrong Side of Heaven

by From_Ashes



Category: Ao no Exorcist | Blue Exorcist
Genre: Blue Night Revelations, Demons, Dyslexic Okumura Rin, Everyone’s oblivious, F/M, Fluff, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, OC/Okumura rin - Freeform, Okumura Rin/Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, Original Female Character(s) - Freeform, Time Manipulation, close friendships, exposed secrets, family bonds, threat
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-11
Updated: 2020-02-13
Packaged: 2020-12-09 05:49:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,389
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20989874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/From_Ashes/pseuds/From_Ashes
Summary: During the Blue Night the Vatican issued a death sentence for an entire species - a species that had worked alongside exorcists for hundreds of years to defend Assiah against the threat of demonic influence.These beings were known as Time-Weavers.They were species of demon born of Assiah and were despised by the Kings of Gehenna for taking the side of humans.As the exorcists were ordered to eliminate their former partners, the world fell into disrepair as generation after generation of Time-Weavers are eliminated, until, one day the hunt for the powerful beings seemed to stop.The notice for their extinction had been issued.There was no one left, no one except Shoko Mazaki - the final refugee to survive the carnage.Upon entering True Cross academy, she understands the danger she has put herself in as she trains to become an exorcist. She must keep her secret at all costs or face the fate of all Time-Weavers.But, Shoko isn’t the only one keeping dangerous secrets. The two brothers that share her dorm always seem to omit things; especially Rin, who always seems to attract unexplainable things.What danger should follow should they discover what each other truly are?





	1. Into The Flames: End Of an Era

**Author's Note:**

> So this my first Fic here and my first on Blue exorcist! I've fallen in love with the characters and the world. I love all the possibilities it has.
> 
> (This chapter is kind of a prologue, but its vital to understand parts later on in the story and how Shoko acts. This is also not the best chapter I’ve ever written and the next one will definitely be better.)

It wasn’t supposed to be like that. Never in a million years.

But, there she was and there they were. It had happened and there was no longer any possible way to turn back.

Eleanora Mazaki pushed through the panic and petrifying thoughts that threatened to cloud her perception and drive her beyond all hope of retrieval. She ran towards the door to greet her flustered and terrified husband who had just delivered the news that neither of them ever wished to occur, ever thought could happen.

Of course it was always a possibility, a permanent threat looming over their heads, oozing fear and inducing unimaginable panic whenever brought up in conversation.

Only it wasn’t a conversation now.

It had become the harrowing reality they had tried their hardest to avoid at all costs; if not for them, then for their young daughter who would never know what it was like to be free, to be accepted, to be understood, to be allowed to _live! _Eleanora felt an animalistic growl bubble and churn at the bottom of her throat at the very notion, threatening to explode and consume everything in its path.

Her child would never know a normal life, would always be in danger, would be forever hunted and it was all because of _them._

_Excorcists._

“Ellie, stop, _stop!” _Her husband, Hiro, said in rushed panic, his hands finding her shoulders to steady her, his piercing blue eyes staring directly into Eleanora’s own, calming the flames that had started to erupt from the woman. His eyes filled with tears as he brought his arms around her, holding her tighter than he ever had before, holding her as if it would be the very last time he would ever have the chance to do so.

“There’s only one of them, so maybe we have a chance…” He desperately whispered into his wife’s hair, he could already feel the tears slipping from his clenched eyelids. It was hopeless. They both knew it. They would not live to see another sunrise, but, there was one person who could survive this, one person that had a chance for a future.

Eleanora’s eyes widened at the realisation. She pulled away from Hiro and glanced in hysteric frenzy over his shoulder.

Her daughter, Shoko, she could be okay. Nobody knew about her.

With fire glazing over her eyes, determination bean to leak from every part of her body. She didn’t care what needed to happen, what she would have to do, but she would rather set the entire world alight with her brilliant red flames before she let those _creatures _take her daughter away from this world.

She turned to look Hiro. The emotion in her eyes was all that was needed to convey what needed to be done. With a solemn nod of his head he laced his fingers through her own, interlacing them together in an action that spoke more to either of them than one thousand words ever could. His other hand rose and rested behind Eleanora’s neck as he brought her closer. Their lips connected briefly for one last, passionate kiss. Neither wanted to pull away, neither wanting to say goodbye. However, everything beautiful must end and every love story must have its conclusion. So, with shaking breaths Eleanora pulled away, leaning her head against Hiro’s as a traitorous tear leaked down her cheek. Her hand squeezed and tightened in their grip. It was her lifeline, for she knew what would happen in barely five minutes time. Her steel grey eyes lifted to meet his own, her lips trembled as she told him one final word – the last word she would ever say to him.

“_Go_.” Her breathing was laboured as she spoke; her voice trembling with fear, grief and loss. She released her hand from Hiro’s, letting it fall limply at her side. Closing her eyes, it took every ounce of her willpower to turn away from him. Her hands balled into fists beside her as she opened her eyes. Eleanora was now facing the entrance to their home – a once Havana where her family could live in piece, now to be desecrated and left in blood and carnage.

She wiped the tears from her eyes as she listened to Hiro’s retreating footfalls. He would keep their Shoko safe. He would keep her away from the fight, whilst she distracted the exorcist as their first line of defence.

With one last shaking breath, Eleanora began to drown out the noise, the thoughts, fears and vulnerability. She was an emotionless machine who had only been created for one purpose and one purpose only; to keep Shoko Mazaki alive.

If only things could have been that simple.

It wasn’t long before the banging and shouting began on the other side of the door. Even shorter before the wood began to splinter and break. Seconds. Only seconds remained.

She hoped Hiro had gotten there in time.

There was silence. Deadly silence. Silence that seemed to consume, conquer and devour anything in sight. Eleanora steeled herself for whatever was to come through the door, despite the utter terror that dragged ferocious icicles through her viens.

The door broke open.

The exorcist stepped in.

A breath.

A grin.

Then blue flames erupted from the assailants body.

And all hell broke loose.

“_My dear Eleanora. I’ve finally found you.” _

The words sounded strange coming from the body that supposedly housed them. Bitter, twisted – _wrong. _Blood oozed from the exorcists eyes, mouth, nose and ears at a pace that only seemed to increase the longer she stared at it. But, staring was the least of her worries as a blast of blue flames washed through the house in a torrent of blinding light. Eleanora covered her eyes as the flames whipped past her, not burning, but enough to make her skin glowing red once they subsided.

That was her first mistake.

For when she lowered her arm, the exorcist was in her face, grinning. A hand latched itself around her throat as a maniacal laughter made its was out of the intruders lips. No air could pass into her lungs as she was lifted up off of the ground and suspended mid-air. She grasped and clawed at the hand to release herself, but its was a fruitless attempt. She wasn’t strong enough.

She felt a breath close to her ear.

“_You know I expected more from you. How did you become so… weak?” _

Malice and disgust poured from every syllable as he tossed her across the room. She collided with wall producing a sickening crack. Sliding to the ground, Eleanora grasped her throat with her hand as dry heaved and gulped for the oxygen that was slowly winding its way back into her abused lungs. Her vision blurred as she turned over and pushed her torso up with her arms. She was weak, she knew this – just not as weak as that _monster _made her out to be. If he wanted a play-thing, then a play-thing he would get; anything to give Hiro more time, to keep their daughter hidden – _safe_.

She swayed slightly as she stood up, defiantly wiping the blood from her lips. Her breathing was still laboured and her vision still swam as if she were looking from behind a waterfall…

… but she’d rather die than give up that easily.

She took a few steps before she heard a voice. A voice so filled with anger, fear and fury that even the strongest of Gods would have quivered in fear.

Too bad there were no Gods there that day.

“ELLIE! Get the fuck away from her you bastard!” Hiro snarled as he entered the room. He did not care for the blue flames that flew from the furniture around him, nor his immanent death that would surly follow; he only cared for his injured wife who still swayed on her feet despite her face being devoid of all fear. For what he did to her? That exorcist – no – _demon_ would pay.

He drew his guns from his holster and began to shoot relentlessly at the demon, not registering in the slightest what the colour of those flames truly meant. A savage scream tore its way from his throat as he ran towards the other being.

The demon lurched and bled, yet that gleeful and smug sneer never left his distorted face. Up close it wasn’t hard to identify the fatal marks of upper-demon possession. The shark-like fangs, pointed ears… just the bleeding seemed to confuse him.

But, placed with those blue flames it all started to make sense.

This wasn’t any ordinary demon.

_Oh no._

Hiro hesitated slightly as a lick of fear climbed its way into him.

That was his first and last mistake.

For when Hiro tried once more to fire his weapon, he found his hand trapped underneath a clawed, much larger one.

Hiro’s eyes widened as he looked into the bloody eyes before him. That was it. That was how he was going to die.

The demon tutted, using his other hand to pull him closer.

“_Hiro_!!!” He was sure he heard Ellie call, but it was too late, everything was so distant. His guns fell from his hands with a resounding _thud_. Blood began to fall from his mouth as his ears filled with white-noise and his knees buckled beneath him. It wasn’t long before blue flames began to lick up the sides of his arms, trailing over his chest, before reaching his head and engulfing him in flames. One harrowing, blood-curling howl left his lips before it became too much.

He lost consciousness as he slowly turned to ash.

It had been merely three seconds since he had entered the room and that was all the time needed to see a life snuffed out like a candle doused in water.

Eleanora had become hysterical. She had only made it half-way across the room before the love of her life had fallen.

As tears raged down her face, red flames erupted from her like waves from a tsunami. A calm settled over her as she stilled. Her silvery eyes slowly filling with a glowing red, like ink in water. She no longer cared for controlling her powers as she released their full capacity towards her husbands murderer.

The demon flinched, but covered it with a laugh, despite being injured by the flames.

“_I knew that human was unworthy of you. Your power truly is something to behold!”_

Ignoring those taunting words, Eleanora took large, controlled steps forward. Her appearance emanating power as flames set everything alight. She did not care. She had no one to protect. Shoko was safe, she was sure of it. There was nothing left to do now but die – die or do what she had been born to do.

Her back was straight and shoulders pushed back at she stood toe-to-toe with the demon. The beast looked at her with equal amounts fear and amusement as he rapidly healed from the burst of fire and fury. He brown eyes gazed into the broken red ones of the woman before him. A powerful woman with nothing to lose is indeed one of the most dangerous beings of all.

Not breaking her gaze once, Eleanora slowly raised her arm, fingers folding over one another as she prepared to take advantage of the strongest power she possessed. Her broken eyes stared blankly into brown before she snapped her fingers.

Only, nothing happened.

Eleanora’s gaze broke instantly as she looked at her now outstretched hand in confusion and despair.

_No, no, this-this can’t be!_

A high-pitched, maniacal laugh stole her attention away from her hand. The demon snatched her wrist before slowly pouring his blue flames onto her, letting them seep beneath her skin before releasing her once more.

_“You really thought that would work on me?! That you could freeze me in time?! I am the King of Gehenna, the ruler of an entire dimension – SATAN! No Time-Weaver, even with your power, would ever be strong enough to defeat me!”_

That had been her second and final mistake.

Eleanora stepped back, feeling the blue heat rush through her veins. She had lost. She knew this. She was seconds from death, yet she felt no pain. A daze clouded her mind as she looked towards her hands – they were melting; all of her was melting… from the inside out. She did not scream as she slid to the floor, did not cry for she could feel nothing. The only thing that could register in her mind was the consuming blue light that strangled everything, before the world faded into the blackest abyss.


	2. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here’s the official first chapter... and it’s been like five months because uni is an all-consuming machine that stresses out my stress to a hellish extent.
> 
> It’s a long chapter this one and I’m sure the quality varies, but for the most part I’m happy with it, just the dialogue could be better, but I’m always bad at that to start with I just need to know them enough for it to be natural.
> 
> Anyways enjoy!

The train journey seemed to trickle by in parts of painful eternities. Five hours she had sat there and only now that her destination was in sight did, she wish for it to be longer. It wasn’t that she wished to be elsewhere, simply, it was fear that prevented the giddy excitement to electrify her nerves and give her the confidence she so desired. Fear of the unknown. It sounded so silly just thinking about it. How can one possibly be terrified of something they cannot even begin to predict or understand – _control._

But that was the issue wasn’t it?

Control.

Shoko sighed as she lent her head against the window of the train, her hand supporting her head as a cushion. The glass was cold and fogged in distorted circles upon contact with her breath. But it didn’t matter, she had never been put off by the cold. It was almost soothing in a way, like a cool hand to feverish skin. However, this small comfort didn’t stop her from wishing for something warmer, something the glowing sun in front of her seemed to promise with every ounce of its illuminating, glowing being.

Fifteen minutes and she would be there.

Glancing out the window, she sighed. Everything about True Cross Academy looked so unimaginably beautiful. To the endless spires that ascended to the heavens; to the beautiful buildings trailing upwards in a mosaic of white, beige and gold – to the way the beautiful glow of the sun filtered through the architecture in stunning rays of light. Even the way the light reflected of the still water seemingly danced with magic. It was truly the most incredible place she had ever seen.

_I shouldn’t be terrified of this place._

But, there was one very obvious reason for that fear, a reason that tarnished the view before her; twisting it into something fearsome and menacing as if it weren’t simply a school she was to step foot in, but an arena designed for gladiators; only, it wasn’t lions she was to face, but a fearsome swarm of mighty dragons… and all she held for defence was simply a frail twig.

If she alerted the dragons she would die. If she dropped the twig she would die. The only chance for survival seemed to lie in isolation, a concept she was used to but was by no means good at. Shoko had always tried to talk to others, despising the mere concept of being alone – of having no one.

Shoko moved her head away from the window and looked down. Hands raked through her hair as she tried to stop her racing thoughts, eyes shutting so tightly deep crinkles began to appear at their corners. She knew she needed to calm down, that there was no way in _hell_ anyone would possibly expect to suspect anything, unless she gave them good reason to. She took slow, yet steady breaths as she lifted her head upwards, one hand still tangled in her hair. Slowly, she slid her hand out of the slightly tangled strands of pale gold and placed it in her lap.

** _We are now arriving at True Cross Academy Station. _ **

** **

Well, it was now or never.

_It’s been fifteen minutes already?_

Shoko stood up to retrieve her bag before slinging it over her shoulders and moving into the isle. Her suitcase was small, but still lay just a bit further away with the other student’s luggage. Moving further towards the exit and trying not to bump into others proved to be more of a hassle than she initially realised, especially thanks to a couple of very impatient girls behind her that, in their excitement, seemed to be on the verge of partaking in a slight mountaineering expedition. If she got a foot anywhere near her head, Shoko was sure her fist would ‘accidentally’ connect with the owners unsuspecting nose – _hard._

When she finally reached the luggage area, she bent down to pick up her suitcase only to find it was right at the back. Shoko clenched her fists as she let out a low grumble, before bending over further to reach her wayward luggage. She released a bright, shining grin when her fingers finally circled around the handle. She began to pull it when a strong force suddenly crashed into her side. It was those girls. It had to be. Only, in that moment, she couldn’t shout her mind at the hyperactive students as she had lost her balance, beginning a free-fall she was _oh-so-familiar _with. Only, it never came as two hands steadied her and put her upright once more; well, as upright as bent over with your head buried deeply into the luggage hold could usually get.

“Don’t let assholes push you around.” Came the abrupt and gruff voice of the boy that had stopped her from falling. Shoko rolled her eyes playfully, fully aware that the only witnesses to the action were a multitude of suitcases. But, it didn’t matter, nor did it stop a small smile from forming on her lips.

“Thanks, man!” She spoke with enthusiasm, lifting a small thumbs-up behind her to show the boy. “I owe you one!” She continued, only to be met by silence.

Shoko frowned realising that the boy had already left. She huffed slightly before shaking her head and retrieving her suitcase. She placed a hand on her back as she stood up, stretching slightly before she finally made her way towards the door.

_It’s now or never._

And so, with one last shaking breath, Shoko stepped off the train and looked up at the massive conglomeration of buildings before her. This was her future, her fate, her refuge and her downfall.

Now she just needed to get started.

———

After a strange ordeal with a woman offering to take her luggage to her dorm and finding out that she had been employed by the school to do so, Shoko realised that things here were much different to what she had known her entire life. She should have guessed it in all honesty, expected it even, yet it was that unfamiliar attentiveness that put her on edge, that took her longer than any of the other students to hand over her luggage and tell the woman her dorm and room number.

Just thinking about these things was enough to give Shoko a headache. The difference became even more apparent when she wandered into the auditorium. It was the grandest room she had ever seen. Her eyes widened and jaw opened slightly as looked at the massive theatre before her. Seats, red as pure ruby, extended back into the endlessly high ceiling; the stage was adorned in golden detailing and embossment, making it gleam brightly against the blinding lights that exposed the stage.

Suddenly, her headache became worse. She winced and rubbed her temples as she made her way up the steps to her seat. It was in the middle, not so far from the stage that she couldn’t see, but far enough to not be bombarded by loud microphones and rowdy classmates.

At least that was the idea.

As everyone eventually made their way to their seats, it soon became very apparent that nowhere would have been safe from the noise. The microphones blared and screeched every so often, making Shoko wince, and the lights became almost too bright to handle. Suddenly, she wished she hadn’t left her paracetamol in her bag…

…then something, or rather someone, caught her attention. He was sat on the stage near the Head Teacher. His glasses were a small rectangle shape that, oddly enough, suited him and framed his face well along with his dark-brown hair. His posture was stiff, and he looked oddly serious for a fifteen-year-old. But, that wasn’t the part that drew her focus. No. He looked familiar. Not familiar as in; ‘we had a really nice chat once, but I haven’t seen you in a while’ type of look, but as in a, ‘I don’t know why, but your face just kinda looks like it wants to get slapped’ kind of way.

Shoko furrowed her eyebrows. There was no reasonable excuse she had for this thought, nothing logical. She didn’t even know the poor guys name, yet here she was judging him for no apparent reason. She figured she must be having an off day.

“Please welcome to the stage… Yukio Okumura!” The Deputy Head boomed over the microphone.

Oh.

_Him_.

Shoko instantly realised just how justified her thoughts truly were.

She had never met the boy in person, but, in her mind, that was truly and fully irrelevant. He had become class representative over her. _Him _not _Her_. She knew she was being petty – fully aware of the fact, by my_ God _she couldn’t have cared less even if she tried.

He had beaten her. That was a fact.

It was also a fact that he had beaten her by half a mark on the entrance exam.

_Half a mark!_

Sure, he may be here on a scholarship like herself, and they had that in common, but, if she didn’t win against him next year? Well, there would be hell to pay. He just didn’t know it yet.

With a scowl on her face, she watched Yukio give his speech. It was upbeat and inspirational and wonderful and every other possible synonym that just so happened to describe just how _majestic _Yukio Okumura was in that utterly thrilling moment.

She let out an indignant laugh at the very thought and lent back on her seat.

Shoko just wanted this whole debacle to be over. She didn’t want to deal with the auditorium, the loud noises and the bright lights. She didn’t want to deal with speech after boring speech, with words so hollow she was surprised they didn’t echo. But, what was truly driving her crazy was the high-pitched _shrieks _of the girls around her. They at taken a liking to the new _Class Representative _it seemed, and they couldn’t freaking shut up!

Her head pounded as their incessant babble increased in volume and pitch to the point where she was sure the boy in question must have been hearing every word. She almost felt bad for the guy, being hounded and bombarded at every corner, getting talked about constantly. But, maybe that was fate, maybe he was just meant to live his life here like that – constantly being bothered by others.

After another gruelling thirty minutes, it’s was announced that everything had ended and that they could leave.

Shoko was sure she hadn’t moved faster in her life.

———

After meandering down endless corridors; gliding up impossibly tall, golden escalators and taking in just how _enormous_ the entire school was, finally, Shoko had found her way to her introductory classroom. Glancing towards the board cautiously – fearing she was in the wrong class – Shoko puffed out a long breath of relief at finding that the words on the whiteboard matched the ones scribbled messily on her palm. Quickly, she moved her way across the room, weaving through desks and avoiding the disgusted and judgemental looks she would get whenever she would bump into one. Sighing, she sat down at the back next to a window. She was wiped and it hadn’t even been a full day. Resting her slightly aching head on her hand she glanced around the classroom, avoiding the not-so-subtle stares of her potential classmates.

The room was huge, but not as grand as the auditorium. Shoko was sure she would have made more of an effort to show just how struck she was by the entire place, but energy failed her, leaving her to look utterly bored.

She glanced dully at the door as she watched other students calmly walk in and group together near the desks. It seemed like everyone had friends already.

Well, almost everyone.

A boy barged into the room as if he were a hurricane on legs. He was grinning madly and in complete awe of the room as he spun around, letting out quiet words of astonishment as he took the place in. He had choppy black hair and carried a long, thin, red bag over his shoulder. Shoko dropped her hand to take a closer look. He clearly wasn’t from a rich background either and it showed, but, damn it, was his excitement infectious. Shoko found herself smiling for the first time that day as she watched the boy wander around the classroom as if it were the most amazing thing he had ever seen.

Soon, he found himself sitting down at the desk in front of her. He drummed the wooden surface happily before letting out a not-so-quiet; “Aw man, this is so cool!” Which unfortunately, drew the attention of the other students who quickly began to talk about him in probably the most unsubtle way Shoko had ever heard – even more so than in her own case. They ridiculed him for his actions, his words and his background. It seemed with every taunt the boy’s shoulders sagged deeper and deeper to the point where it looked like they had tried slide away, like sand in a timer. Shoko imagined that brilliant smile slipping dramatically off his face, only to be replaced with an expression so self-conscious he may just fade away.

Shoko realised very quickly she didn’t like that thought. Not at all.

So, with a determined expression, Shoko leaned over her desk and prodded the boy in the shoulder with her finger.

His response was faster than she anticipated as he whipped his head around face her before she even had a chance to prepare herself to say something. She faltered for a moment as his intense blue eyes stared directly at her, gaze questioning as he took her in. She recovered quickly before nodding over to the students who had started gossiping about him.

“Don’t listen to them. Not everyone is born into money and if they can’t see that then it’s their own damn problem. I hate it when people judge others like that.” She said on a small shrug as she smiled lightly at the confused boy.

He looked at her for a moment longer before a smile spread its way across his face. He turned his seat around further so he could face her more properly. One hand reached behind his head as he scratched it anxiously.

“Thanks! It’s nice to know I’m not the only one around here that doesn’t keep a spare million in their pocket as change.” He looked down, laughing slightly, before glancing up at Shoko once more. “I’m Rin by the way. Nice to meet ya!” He finished cheerily as a goofy grin took over his lips.

Shoko couldn’t help but smile back as she leaned forward on her desk. “I’m Shoko. Honestly, could you imagine having a spare million lying around? That would be _crazy_.”

Rin nodded his head enthusiastically. “Aw man I could get so much stuff with that. It’s not even funny how much food I could make!”

Shoko continued. “But, we’d have to be careful not to get caught up in everything. One minute we could be buying food to our hearts content, the next it’s; ‘Oh, tea and crumpets darling, spiffing and don’t forget lunch is at high-noon!’ Honestly, what even is high noon?” She asked in annoyance, glaring at her desk. She glared for a few moments longer before she heard a few strange, airy noises coming from in front of her.

She glanced up only to find Rin staring at her, his eyes crinkled and biting his bottom lip as he tried to contain his laughter. Soon enough it bubbled out of him as he leaned forward in his chair, cackling and holding his chair tightly. Shoko gave him a look of annoyance and scoffed as she waited for Rin to regain any semblance of composure. An annoyed “What?” Left her lips as she tried to get the boy to calm down.

After a few moments he managed to regain himself, sitting up before slouching back on his chair. He cleared his throat once he turned to her and came face-to-face with the confused and annoyed expression she gave.

“It’s just, it’s great how you’ve decided all rich people are Victorian, upper-class, English people. Do you actually think that?” He said on a small laugh as he raised his eyebrows.

Shoko folded her arms, leant back and looked off to the side.

“No.”

_Yes_

“Of course not.” She said strongly, staring directly into Rins eyes once more. Rin raised an eyebrow and leaned forward slightly.

“Are you sure about that? ‘Cause I’m pretty sure you do.” He stated the most teasing tone of voice he could muster. A wide grin still plastered on his face.

Shoko tried to glare back she really, truly did. But, as soon as she looked into Rins excited eyes, she felt her resolve waver. She was done for. It was all over. She buried her head into her arms on the desk and groaned loudly.

“Fine, you win. But, I only believe it like, this much.” She revealed, lifting her thumb and index finger close together. She wasn’t embarrassed, no, not at all.

Lifting her head up slightly, she looked at Rin cautiously. Was he going to tell people that she didn’t understand how upper society worked? Was he going to use it to boost his popularity, despite being at odds with the system? He didn’t seem like the type – at all – but she had only just met him, and she knew better than anyone that first impressions often gave the most fake version of a person. Rin seemed genuine, but she would have to talk to him more often to gauge his personality properly.

Propping her head on top of her hand she decided to change the topic. She wanted to know the boy in front of her more.

“Hey Rin, what class are you in this year?” Simple, easy enough of a conversation starter. Rin looked down slightly, but it wasn’t out of embarrassment or shame, but rather annoyance. He was incredibly irritated at one simple fact and that fact was;

“I’m at the bottom of Class C. It’s where they put all the stupid people and potential dropouts. I get it though. I’m not that smart.” He shrugged before looking back up to Shoko, his smile suddenly back in the excitement of learning her answer. “What about you? What class are you in?”

He really hoped she was in his class.

“I’m in Class A the… uh… advanced section.” Shoko said awkwardly, waving her hand at the idea. “But, that doesn’t matter. You though. You shouldn’t call yourself dumb. Not everyone gets things in the same way.”

Rins smile faltered briefly upon hearing their different classes, but soon perked up again as a thought crossed his mind.

“Wow! Seriously?! You must be really smart then? What was your score on the entrance exam? I bet it was so good!” He said excitedly, practically jumping up and down.

Shoko chuckled slightly at his antics and shook her head. “I guess you could say that? But, my score? I’m not gonna lie since I’m still slightly touchy on it, not much, but you know, a little bit?” She rambled on slightly but continued at Rin’s unwaveringly stubborn gaze. She sighed. “I was actually almost the Class Representative, but I was beaten out by that guy with the glasses. I can’t remember his name…” _you bet I can_. “… but there was literally half a mark between us, and he got it, so I just need to beat him out next year.” She shrugged as if it were a no big deal when, in fact, it was a very large, great-big _whopping_ deal.

Rin seemed to think so too as his eyes grew immeasurably large and his jaw hung open slightly. His finger trembled slightly as he pointed it at her. “Holy _shit!!!_” He exclaimed as he dropped his arm. “Yukio only beat you out by half a point?! That’s crazy! You must be super smart.” Rin shook his head slightly in disbelief. “Man, you’ve gotta lend me some of your brain-power. I seriously need it.” He finished on a laugh.

Shoko couldn’t hold herself back as she too, laughed along, unable to stop herself from joining in on his contagious fits of jovial goodness. She enjoyed talking to him and could probably do so all day if they weren’t waiting on their, _very late,_ teacher that had yet to make an appearance.

But, really, she found she didn’t care.

“Well, you’re in luck. I can’t possibly hope to contain everything in my massive, massive brain, so? I’ll make an exception.” She sent him a teasing grin before breaking out in a small laugh, unable to take her own words seriously in the slightest. “Man, seriously if you ever need any help, just ask yeah? It’s honestly no big deal.”

Rins entire face lit up like a Guy Fawkes fireworks display. “Really?! You really mean that?” He asked in earnest excitement, leaning forwards in his chair slightly.

Shoko simply smiled and shrugged her shoulders. “Yeah sure, I don’t see why not.”

She didn’t think it was possible but, there it was. Rin’s grin managed to get even bigger.

“Thank you so much!” He began, his grin sobering slightly as he spoke. “Not just for this but what you said before too about me being… dumb and stuff. I really appreciate it. Not many people are that kind.” By the end his grin had waned to a small, awkward smile, but it was the most genuine expression Shoko had witnessed him give to her in the short time they had been talking.

She really liked it.

What she didn’t like however, was the implications of his words; that no one seemed to ever give him the time of day. Shoko’s heart twisted at the thought of this kind, funny and exuberant boy being pushed aside and ridiculed for things out of his control.

“No worries, Rin.” She said with a shy smile as she looked down towards her desk. Taking thanks and compliments had never been her strong suit.

However, no more conversation could happen between the two as the teacher finally stepped into the class to declare the entire years outline.

Rin turned his body back around, so he was facing the front. Shoko lifted her gaze up from her desk.

“So, class, I’m sorry to have kept you waiting…”

———

After class had finished, Shoko and Rin quickly exited the room, excitedly jabbering on about meeting up after school the next day and how they could be in the same class considering the Headmaster had decided to merge the year groups that term – something about it being advantageous to every student, Shoko vaguely remembered, not that she was complaining in any way, shape or form.

Their hands moved in excitable gestures as their eyes lit up with amusement and giddiness. It seemed as if the two could have talked for hours at the speed they were communicating at. Never once was there an awkward silence or a lapse in conversation; all that past between them was pure excitement and joy in the fact that they had connected so easily. It was something they were both so unfamiliar with that it made them both slightly more animated than what would typically be deemed appropriate. If this kept up Rin could become Shoko’s – dare she say it – friend?

She would like that. She really, really would.

It seemed he would too as, when they finally parted ways, they both had arranged to meet up the next day by the fountain in the courtyard.

As she turned away from him with a glowing smile on her face, Shoko wandered towards the hallway to her next class – her first real class. Her smile faltered at that. This was where everything could go wrong.

Cram School.

Becoming an exorcist was something she had always wanted to do, always wanted to achieve and always wanted to excel in – her entire life. It wasn’t hard to see were the inspiration had come from considering her father had been a largely accomplished exorcist and her mother was largely renowned in the True Cross Order for her works with them. Well, that was until… until…

No. She couldn’t think of that. Not now.

Her mind was already far too muddled concerning her current predicament to be trapped in the past – even if that past acted as the perfect warning towards the horrors she could face. She always had to keep it in mind, despite it being the last thing she’d ever want to think about.

She turned another corner and took a deep breath, closing her eyes as she willed her body to go lax from its seemingly permanent state of rigidness whenever she dared to bring up the topic of exorcists. The door was in front of her; all she needed to do was put her mother’s key into the door, turn and push. It was a simple action that any competent two-year-old could easily achieve.

But, no two-year-old dealt with the weight that slipped beyond the smooth, cold and worn surface of the key – that transcended beyond its weighty feel and seeped into her now lead-weighted bones.

She could feel the grooves beneath her fingers, begging – _wanting _her to take that final plunge, to step into a fate she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to ever face. But she knew she had to. If Shoko ever wanted to be free, wanted justice then she had no choice but to become something she once admired, but had early on realised to fear.

She shook her head and chuckled lowly, “What the hell am I doing?”

It wasn’t that she’d hadn’t thought it out, she had; in fact, she spent many hours meticulously planning out every step, move and interaction down to the most ridiculous scenarios that made even herself laugh loudly at the sheer absurdity of her situation.

She had planned it, so why did she hesitate so much?

Honestly, she did not know, but the pressure of not going through with it began to eat away at her mind, forcing her to harshly shake herself out of it before she backed out completely.

_It’s now or never._

She turned the key.

The doorway opened and she stepped through.

She never once looked back.

_Never _was never an option.

The door slammed shut behind her, making her jump slightly before she began to move over towards the the wooden frame to retrieve her key. Shoko slid it out of the lock before quickly pocketing it, sure to instantly move down the corridor without notice. It was paranoia that made her do this, nothing more and nothing less. Rationally, she knew she had no reason to keep looking over her shoulder, to keep second guessing her surroundings or to think using her key was at all unusual, after all; it was how every Cram School student arrived at their classes.

Shoko grabbed her left arm tightly as she rubbed it. Her steel-grey eyes cautiously looking around the hallway as she took everything in. It looked old, older than she’d expected. The corridors were long and dark, the walls taking a greenish colour as they extended up into magnificent archways of stained-glass murals, which allowed the beams of light to flood into the gloomy corridor in brilliant shows of vibrant colour. It truly was beautiful – almost as beautiful as some of the medieval churches she had visited in her childhood.

That’s sense of age gave Shoko at least a slither of peace, knowing that generations before her had walked these corridors, filled to the brim with history, and lived to tell the tale.

Although many did not.

Those halls were haunted. They were walls filled with ghosts of days gone by, never able to leave and see the light of day again.

Shoko hoped she’d never have to join the spectres that were cursed to belong to the Order for all eternity.

Her footsteps echoed throughout the empty corridor. She wondered where everyone was. Had they gone into their classes, or was she alone, left to wander the hallways into oblivion? A shiver ran up her spine as she reached the door of her classroom. 1106. She reached her arm out and tightly gripped the doorknob, quickly turning it, before pushing the door open.

She blinked in surprise upon entering the room. It’s was brighter than the hallway, much less extravagant too. There weren’t many people in the room, only seven in total. There were two girls near the back, one average looking with brown hair and eyes, that had a kind look on her face; the other had purple hair and blood-red eyes with an expression that seemed to violently counteract the girl she sat with. There was also a group of three boys with differing expressions. The one on the right was bald and seemed quite shy, which contrasted with the pink haired one in the middle who lazily gave her a wink across the room. Shoko raised an eyebrow, not liking how forwards he was. It seemed the last of the trio agreed as he rolled his eyes and whacked the back of his flirty friend’s pink head. He was gruffer than the others and had, in Shoko’s opinion, one of the most ridiculous haircuts she had ever seen. It was a brown Mohawk with a bleach blonde strip down the middle.

She tried not to laugh at it as she made her way towards her seat. She really, truly did. So, when she began snickering and coughed incredibly conspicuously to cover it up, she could only imagine the look on the boys faces as they watched a complete stranger laugh at their antics so openly. Awkwardly looking towards the desk, Shoko rubbed the back of her neck, letting out one last cough before abruptly sitting down at a desk near the front.

It was strange sitting in that room knowing what she was to become. It was a leap of faith based on a young-girl’s childish dream to be just like her father – to make him proud. Shoko was determined, focused and utterly consumed by the mere idea of becoming an exorcist even if she knew it would ultimately lead to her demise. If she just had one chance to change things, one opportunity to free whoever survived the carnage of her youth? Well, it didn’t matter the consequences towards her. She would take it without hesitation.

The door creaked from her right, signalling the arrival of another student. Shoko let out a quiet sigh before turning her attention towards the noise. Her eyebrows shot up in surprise, eyes widening as she watched the student walk in.

He looked a mixture of lost, apprehensive, cautious and held an incredible amount of defensiveness. It was a far cry from the expression he had carried not even an hour ago during orientation.

He looked just like her.

“Rin?”

She barely even recognised the name slipping from her lips before his eyes instantly connected with hers.

His face matched her shocked features as he made his way towards her. “Shoko? What are you doing here?”

Her expression dropped, only to pick up once more, a small smile appearing, “Probably the same reason as you… fishing.”

Rin rolled his eyes, his expression softening slightly. “Yes, of course, fishing, how could I forget!” He moved over closer towards her desk. “You mind if I take that seat there?”

Shoko followed his fingers direction towards the seat next to her, turned her head back to Rin and shrugged her shoulders.

“Sure.”

Rin didn’t waste any time in sitting down. Shoko could practically hear him breaking the sound barrier as he sped around the desk. He could certainly give The Flash a run for his money if he ever decided to take up the profession of getting himself into ridiculous situations to save innocent people with no regard for personal safety.

Wait.

Shoko creased her eyebrows.

Wasn’t that exactly what they were training to do?

Her fingers pinched the bridge of her nose.

_God Damn it!_

“You okay there? Class hasn’t even started yet and you already look like you wanna set this place on fire?” Rin laughed slightly as he took in the girl next to him who seemed just about ready to implode.

She looked up towards him and gripped her hair, slightly tugging it. The mention of fire threw her off slightly. Of course, he couldn’t possibly know and would absolutely, one-hundred-percent freak the complete hell out if he knew how close to the truth he actually just came. After all, he was just a human like everyone else in that room – well, presumably – and may not be accustomed to strange fire-like powers.

It still didn’t change that fact that she was so anxious that she kind of did want to set fire to the room if it would remove just a small amount of the bone-crushing stress that seemed intent on growing like a god-damn tumour at that point.

“Yeah, I’m alright, just kind of nervous you know? I don’t want to mess this up.”

_I don’t want to die._

Rin gave her a strange look that she couldn’t quite place. He leaned over slightly to get a better look of her face. “You know nothing has started right? You can’t mess up nothing.”

Shoko looked back towards him. He didn’t and couldn’t know what was actually going on. No one could. Still, she smiled and gave a small nod towards him. She needed to play along. “I guess you’re right. I think today’s just been a bit overwhelming honestly. I’ve never seen anything like this place.”

Hook.

“You know what I mean?”

Line.

Rin nodded his head, his face relaxing slightly, although he never smiled back. “Yeah, I get it completely. In all honestly this place equal parts puts me on edge and irritates the _shit_ out of me.”

_Sinker. _

Shoko raised an eyebrow as she fixed him a look. “I get the being on edge part, but why does it irritate you so much?”

“Oh!” Rin began, “I just can’t stand school.” He finished, managing a large grin as he pointed his thumb towards his chest. Shoko wasn’t going to lie, it greatly disturbed her that the only time Rin smiled, it was when he was talking about practically hating something. And that begged the question, why was he in school if he didn’t want to be there? He wasn’t legally obligated to after all. Something seriously didn’t add up with the incongruous juxtaposition between his words and actions. Something was clearly missing in terms of context.

However, just as she was about to ask him, a small, white terrier jumped up onto his lap and seemed to almost glare at her.

That most certainly did not make even a lick of sense.

It seemed that was to become a running theme for the boy beside her.

Shoko pointed slightly at the dog, looking between it and Rin. “What is happening…?”

Rin at least looked somewhat apprehensive about the prospect of a random dog with clear temperament issues appearing seemingly out of nowhere. He let out a small nervous laugh and looked towards the dog. “Well… you see… he… uh…”

He however, never got to finish his incoherent rambling of an excuse as the door opened once more revealing the teacher.

The entire atmosphere changed in that moment.

Shoko muttered curses about it just being her luck that she ended up with that know-it-all as a teacher, whilst Rin choked violently on his own saliva in utter shock.

“Quiet down class. Take your seats, please. Class will now begin.”

Yukio-fucking-Okumura.

“It’s nice to meet you.”

_Why did it have to be you?_

Honestly, anyone but Yukio would have sufficed. She knew it probably wasn’t healthy to hold as much of a grudge over half a mark as she was, but what she was currently seeing was ridiculous. He was their age, incredibly smart, an exorcist and a teacher; it honestly seemed there was no end to the ways in which he could best her. It shook her resolve slightly, knowing that catching up to him would take more than a term of studying incredibly hard to match his grades – it could potentially take years to match up with him. That, really, truly irked her to no ends. She rested her head on her hand as she looked vaguely forwards, not paying attention in the slightest.

It wasn’t just their petty rivalry that ticked her off; there was something about him on the whole that set her on edge. He seemed too calm, to the point it seemed like he had extracted all emotions from his body, leaving only a calculated inhuman mind behind. His eyes carried that same calm emotionless. It unnerved her. It was probably nothing, just her mind playing tricks on her, but something seriously seemed off about that boy – but, everyone claimed he was incredibly kind, so she was sure that had to be correct. That many people wouldn’t lie right? Although they all had been a herd of girls that had taken an obsessive liking towards him. She realised everything she heard about him really should just be taken with a bag of salt if that was the main source.

“Yukio!”

Shoko jumped slightly, returning to reality. It took her a moment of confused looking around before she noticed Rin standing from his seat, pointing towards Yukio.

“Yes, Yukio.” Yukio began coolly. “Is something wrong?”

Rin’s face dropped. He began to shake slightly, although Shoko wasn’t sure if it was from shock, anger, or a combination of both. Either way, it really seemed like he was struggling.

“Wh-Whaddaya mean?! What’s wrong with you?!” He managed to bite out, shaking slightly more than before.

Yukio smiled in return, although it never met his eyes, never even seemed as if it was ever intended to be read as genuine. Shoko suddenly felt a rush of cold propel itself through her body. No – there was definitely something not quite right with him.

“Nothing’s wrong. Class is in session. So be quiet.”

And with those cold, concise and closed words, all the fight within Rin seemed to fizzle out of him, leaving him to sag down into his seat, a look of dejection spreading across his face. That was until he turned towards the dog with the most angered expression she had seen on him yet. He kept mumbling things she just couldn’t quite hear, kept looking at the dog with an expression that was barely decipherable. The only thing that she understood from the situation was that something had transpired between the two boys, enough to provoke so much emotion from one, yet none in the other. Rin was pissed and hurt, that much was obvious, but she wondered just how much of that anger was actually warranted?

But, then again, she had no idea of the situation and really had no place to even comment.

That, however, did not stop her from being curious.

She turned towards Rin who had seemingly calmed down after his earlier outburst, although now – she noticed – he seemed even more closed off than he had been when he entered the room. He was barely concealing his emotions, but they were still sealed enough.

She decided that taking a shot in the dark whilst he was calmer was better than when he was basically one step away from gnawing through the table in sheer rage.

“Hey, Rin?” She whispered, turning her head slightly downwards so she wouldn’t get caught talking.

Rin looked over to her in confusion before turning back to his desk, mirroring her movements.

“Yeah?”

Shoko shifted slightly. “I know it’s not my place, but what just happened?”

Maybe it was her slight movement, or the way her demeanour had changed, but Rin suddenly came to his senses, realising he wasn’t the only one in proximity to see his anger. He sighed titling his head off to the side as he spoke; “Yukio’s my brother. He never told me about any of this stuff. He hasn’t talked to me in days and then he walks in here like there’s nothing wrong, like everything happening right now is perfectly normal.” Rin shook his head knowing he was sharing too much too soon. He’d never had friends, so he never knew what level of sharing was acceptable at the beginning of a friendship – at least, he hoped that this was the beginning of one, that his anger hadn’t screwed it up already. He turned his head towards Shoko slightly, still not making eye-contact and ringing his hands.

“Sorry if I’ve made you uncomfortable with everything. I’m no good at this sort of… stuff.” Rin said bitterly with a slight hint of defeat.

Shoko felt for Rin. She truly did. No one deserved to be left in the dark, especially not by family. Of course, she had no idea of any of the details, but she knew how important sharing with family could be. After all, if her parents hadn’t shared their situation with her and prepared her to survive at an early age, she doubted she would have lasted one day without them. Secrets could tear people apart and could even become dangerous if vital information was withheld.

She didn’t understand a thing that was going on, but at least she had a vague grasp of the rollercoaster Rin must have been trapped on ever since his brother walked into the room.

She turned her head to look at him. “I’m not uncomfortable. don’t worry. Being kept in the dark hurts…” Shoko paused realising she had gotten too personal. She had to lighten the mood, turn the focus away from Rin. “… in all honestly I would have acted the exact same.” She paused once more, crinkling her nose slightly. “Actually, no. I would have reacted so much_ worse.”_ She concluded, embarrassment leaking into her voice.

Rin turned to look at her then, a small amount of amusement spreading across his face. “Seriously?”

“Oh yeah.”

“… So please address me as Mr Okumura.”

That brought Rin and Shoko back to the lesson at hand with a collective groan of annoyance shared between them.

Yukio raised his arm. “So how many of you have encountered Temptaint before? Raise your hands.”

Shoko raised her hand boredly and looked around the class noticing a few hands raising, but upon a sudden tornado spinning out of control next to her attention quickly drew towards that direction. Truly, she was sure Rin’s head would propel right off his neck at the speed he was twisting it round.

She shot him a concerned look. “Hey man, are you good?”

His head instantly whipped towards her, cheeks lighting crimson in embarrassment. “Yeah just… I don’t know what exactly what a… Temptaint is?” Rin ended slightly awkwardly sounding as unsure as one possibly could in any given situation.

Shoko’s eyebrows propelled upwards. “When you said he didn’t tell you anything; how much exactly didn’t he tell you?”

Rin stuttered in response, trying desperately to come up with some sort of answer, when the small, white dog that had been sitting on his lap, poked its head up further, opened its mouth and did the unthinkable.

It _spoke._

“They’re wounds and afflictions you receive from demons.”

Shoko’s eyes widened as she nodded slowly at the speaking canine. “Oh yeah, as you do – that’s totally normal.”

The dog sent her an expression so unamused she supposed he must have seen her the equivalent of a toddler eating all the playdough at nursery. “It’s normal for me. Is that an issue? Can I continue?” the terrier raised its eyebrow precariously.

Her surprise quickly wore of at the dog’s rude attitude. “Would be kinda strange if I wasn’t okay with it considering where I am.” She waved her hand in dismissal. “By all means, go on.”

“As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted.” The dog shot a pointed look at Shoko, who returned the gesture by rolling her eyes and resting her chin on her propped up first. “After a single Temptaint infection, you can see demons. All exorcist must go through this ritual, but you don’t need to though because you can already see them. Your brother, however, was the youngest person to ever become an exorcist. He’s a genius at anti-demon pharmaceuticals.”

“Joy.” Shoko let out tiredly, setting her eyes back to the front. Rin seemed to go entirely quiet as he stared at his brother, deep in thought. Was he really that unaware of everything that surrounded his family his entire life?

While he became lost in thought, the girl beside him decided to pay at least some attention to her first class; which was inherently pointless for her considering she could see demons and had a broad range of knowledge on all the more common forms of demons. Such as Goblins, which seemed to have become the days main topic.

Yukio moved his glasses further up his face as he addressed the class. He explained how the entire classroom hosted a nest of the aforementioned demons. Shoko looked around in wonder, trying to figure out just which nooks and crannies they had decided to dwell within. But with a pang of guilt, she realised that they were currently in their territory – their home – and she knew fine well that the only reason they were allowed to live within the confines of the room was so that they could be used as test subject for the yearly onslaught of Pages, such as themselves. She quickly hid her worry, hoping they wouldn’t do anything cruel to the Goblins.

“is- is it safe?” Came a timid voice from behind Shoko’s seat. Her concentration immediately brought to girl that spoke; the kind-looking one that sat next to girl with red eyes.

“Yes, Goblins are low-level and don’t usually come near people or daylight.” Yukio replied.

Shoko let out a laboured sigh and mumbled to herself; “Until they smell blood. It’s a one-way ticket to crazy town after that.” She just hoped it didn’t come to that. The demons in that room were innocents.

Yukio had apparently heard her as he nodded his head towards her, “That’s right. Once they smell fermented animal blood, they grow violent. However, to achieve Temptaint today, we will draw them out using milk – which they love – mixed with a solution of blood. Please wait while I prepare the solution.”

Shoko turned to Rin after he finished, “Man, this is so _boring. _I kind of just want to go find my dorm room now and be done with this. What do you think, Rin?” She waited for a reply and frowned when she received none, “Rin?” she repeated, that time more delicately and laced with an abundance of caution.

Rin slammed his fist on the desk before abruptly standing up, causing the girl beside in to jump in shock, eyes wide and staring. He quickly manoeuvred around the desk without making a noise, shaking as he approached his brother. He slammed the palms of his hands onto the edge of the desk before staring his brother directly in the eyes.

“Hey!” He shouted, gaining everyone’s attention.

“Yes.” Yukio replied cooly, not even looking his brother in the eyes.

“Explain yourself!”

Yukio did look up then, “We’re in the middle of class. Sit down.” He then motioned towards Rin’s seat with his free hand, whilst the other poured milk into a beaker.

Being told what to do didn’t feel right to him. It never had. Especially not when it was his own little brother administering the commands. He began to shake slightly, his fingertips clawing around the edge of the desk as if it would somehow anchor him to the ground, even if he was filled to the brim with helium in that moment. It was all too much too soon. He was simultaneously falling to the ground, whilst being pulled skywards by some inconceivable force. To put it bluntly; he felt as if he was being torn apart at the seems – another stitch coming loose with every word his brother said.

He felt like he was going to cry.

But, no.

He couldn’t do that.

He was the _strong_ brother, the older one. If anything was going to stay the same, he would make sure that at least he would remain consistent.

So, as quickly as the feeling of tears pricked his eyelids, they became transformed, morphed – _distorted_. He channelled every emotion he was feeling into one he was familiar with, that he relied upon, that he was well known for. Anger.

“Knock it off, Yukio!!!” Rin all but screamed at his brother. His body shaking and teeth bared fiercely as he glared at Yukio with all the venom he could muster. Only his eyes displayed the truth; the hurt that lay beneath.

Or so he thought.

Because, to Shoko Mazaki, his voice sounded far more betrayed, hurt and hysterical, rather than the rage he so clearly wanted to get across. She leaned forwards on her desk, curiously trying to get a snippet of the utter disaster that was undoubtably about to unfold between the two brothers. Her eyebrows knotted together in concentration as the pair got more heated. She desperately wanted to make sure he was okay in that moment, to just sit Rin down and talk to him; and hopefully get him to talk to her too – although, once again, it most definitely wasn’t her place to tread. The water was so murky that one couldn’t even dare to possibly see what lay beneath, what intensions flew under the surface and what emotions bubbled like poorly-timed geizers, desperate to break free, yet forever trapped to bubble in scorching pockets of air, festering until the ground would shatter to release its volatile chaos.

But then everything stilled.

And in the silence, chaos brewed.

Shoko watched as Rin sagged momentarily, only for his head to violently snap up. He rounded the desk and roughly latched onto Yukio’s arm – incidentally the arm that was holding the solution mixture.

“If you knew, then why didn’t you _tell me!!!_” Rin yelled as he spoke, his shakes long forgotten as the all-consuming coldness of betrayal seeped into his fractured heart. He felt broken but couldn’t show anything but anger no matter how hard he tried – not that he tried much to calm it in the first place.

He shook Yukio’s arm roughly, to the point where he forgot where he was, that he was with others. With every shake he managed to quench the thirst of despair that so easily took control of him.

Only, the shaking caused the solution to fall from Yukio’s hand.

The glass shattered.

And goblins swarmed the classroom, desperate to consume the metallic liquid.

Rin looked around shocked and confused as reality crashed heavily upon him.

Yukio looked ready for murder.

Shoko sat in shock. She could feel her wrists heat up from the fire that swarmed within her veins, ready to be released at a moment’s notice, should she need to step in to take care of things. Her fingers on the opposite hand folding over one another, preparing to snap.

She stood up abruptly, noticing the other students become scared and head for the exit as tables and chairs became little more that debris and dust that descended upon them with all the fury of an explosive volcano.

Why had she though using her power would be useful?

It would just end up getting her _killed!_

“Come on let’s get out of here!” A hand wrapped its way around her arm as its owner yelled at her. She didn’t need to see who it was to understand her need to comply. The hand detached itself as she ran for the exit. Her blonde hair whipping behind her like blinding lights of electricity, as the world blew by like a hurricane too deadly to grasp.

Her foot landed over the boundary as she heard the door slam behind her.

Shoko’s head whipped around as she took in the strong, wooden door that separated the demons from the rest of them. She stepped back slowly, running her hands through her hair as she let out the least gentle breath she could muster, her cheeks puffing out as the air released. She turned around slowly, ready to ask Rin just _what in the absolute hell he was thinking_ when she noticed something. Rin was gone. And so was his brother. They were both still in the room.

Shoko suppressed a groan as she desperately tried to hide her annoyance. She just had to start talking to the biggest troublemaker on the planet, didn’t she?

She pinched the bridge of her nose, feeling a headache start to appear at her temples.

_Of course, I fucking did._

“Looks like you’re just as annoyed by this whole thing as I am.” An aggravated voice called out from behind her. She turned briefly to see the boy whom the voice belonged to. It was the gruff looking boy from earlier, his blonde and brown hair failing from its fixtures as he desperately tried to qualm the stress emanating from his entire being.

Shoko laughed breathily, her arm moving out in gesture as she talked, “Yeah, I guess you could say that. Just kind of… shocked?” There was something seriously familiar about his voice.

The boy rolled his eyes, arms folded in front of him, “I’m not.” Shoko didn’t even want to get into the whys of that statement. “I’m taking this really seriously, you know?” He concluded. Shoko didn’t doubt it.

Pushing a stand of hair being her ear, she decided to directly address her problem and that problem was; “This is going to sound really,_ really_ strange, and off-topic, but your voice sounds really familiar and I can’t place it, so it’s really annoying me. Not you, of course, but just the fact I can’t place it.”

The boy gave her a strange look, “We’ve never met before…”

“… I know but.” She cut off groaning in frustration. She had to figure this out, just had to or it would drive her insane every moment of every day for the rest of her life! Okay, maybe that was just a slight exaggeration, but she would most definitely struggle going to sleep not being able to solve her mystery.

Maybe they met earlier that day? No, she’d remember that.

Overheard him? No, that didn’t seem likely either considering how big the school was.

Maybe it was earlier? The train?

Shoko’s eyes widened dramatically as she figured it out, and excited smile spreading its way across her face.

“I’ve got it! Were you on the train from Hiroshima this morning?” She asked excitedly, trying hard not to jump slightly from the joy of solving it.

The boy gave her another strange look, his arm falling to his sides slightly, “I got on at Kyoto, but yeah I did. Why?”

“Remember someone in the luggage holding getting trampled on when the train got here?” He nodded, “Yeah, that was me.” She pointed to herself happily, still smiling happily.

His eyes widened as he looked at her, a small quirk of amusement appearing at the corner of his mouth, before it disappeared completely as if it never were. “It’s really not been your day, has it?”

She flattened her hand, swaying it side to side, “Eh, so-so. Could’ve been worse.”

“How so?”

“I could still be in there dealing with Goblins and whatever else those two have decided to inflict upon that room.”

He did smile at that. Small, barely there, but there none the less. He held out his hand, “I’m Suguro Ryuji.”

She took his hand in a firm grip, “Mazaki Shoko, but just call me Shoko if you want. Nice to meet ya.”

Ryuji matched her grip, “Likewise.”

However, no more could be said as the door to the classroom opened, causing the two to separate and pay attention to the two boys that stepped through the doorway. Rin had an unusually bright smile on his face, despite the circumstances. Confusion swept over Shoko’s features as she tried to reconcile his current mood with the hurt and anger he’d been drenched in earlier. Then she noticed something else.

His smile may have been brilliant, blinding and warm.

But it didn’t come anywhere close to reaching his eyes.

\-------------

After Cram School it was safe to say Shoko was ready to find her bed; nest in it and stay there for all eternity.

She was completely exhausted, that becoming even more apparent with her sluggish steps as she made her way up the cold stairs, her hand running its way through her hair – tangled and messy from every time she decide to touch it that day, which undoubtably managed to accumulate to a number that was beyond acceptable. There was no doubt she looked like a complete mess and she was completely okay with that. No one would see her in the dorm. The Headmaster had informed her prior to arriving that, due to a lack of space in the dormitories, she would be staying in the abandoned boy’s dormitory. Everything would be adequate for her arrival, she was told and it seemed that that was correct.

Shoko didn’t understand why she wasn’t placed in the old girl’s dormitory but didn’t question it. Either way she had the whole building to herself.

She dragged herself down the hallway until she finally found her dorm room. She put in the key and twisted, pushing the door open. The room had two bunk beds, two desks and more than enough room for her to feel comfortable. It was the most room and privacy she’d ever had in her entire life. Looking to the middle of the room, she noticed her bag and suitcase, the size of the room dwarfing her already minimal possessions and, by extension, making the room seem more barren that she originally noticed. It would take a while to make this place feel like home that was for sure.

But, everybody had to start somewhere and she had worked her ass off to no ends to even get a chance to be there. She had no right to complain – not that she would anyway.

Shoko wandered across the room to the freshly made bed and, promptly, face-planted into the pillows and duvet. Now that, that was very nice. There was nothing that could have gotten her to move in that moment. Or so she thought.

Because voices were seeping through the gap of her door, reaching her ears and sending her into a whirlwind of confusion. Wasn’t she supposed to be alone?

She pushed herself up with her arms, twisting her head towards the door as her eyes narrowed slightly. Shoko only had to listen for a few moments before she knew exactly who was behind the threshold.

“No freaking way.” She whispered to herself in disbelief, letting out a soft chuckle soon after she spoke.

Sliding her legs over her bed, she made her way over to the door. Opening it she glanced down the hallway searching for that unmistakeable voice. It didn’t take her long before she found the messy, black mop of hair that was attached to the person she was looking for.

“_Rin?”_

At her voice, Rin’s head whipped round, his eyes slightly alarmed until they rested onto Shoko. Now all that remained was sheer confusion, “Shoko?!”

The girl in question just lifted up her hand and waved, smile peeking at the corners of her lips, “Hello!”

Rin slowly began to walk towards Shoko, confusion still clear across his entire face, “No. Nuh-uh. Nope. You just pop out of nowhere say, “hello!” and expect this to not seem weird.” He shook his head, “What are you doing here?”

At that Shoko stepped out of her room, lent up against the doorframe and rolled her eyes. “I’m staying here obviously, and by the looks of it so are you.”

He was slightly taken aback by that, his body relaxing all the same now he understood her presence. He looked downwards and let out a small ‘huh’ before turning his attention upwards once more. He moved closer towards her, leaning up against the wall in front of her as an amused smile played on his lips.

“You know this is the boy’s dormitory, right?” He asked with just the tiniest hint of condescension and a bucket full of unbridled teasing.

“I’m aware.” She said indignantly, leaning forwards to try and put her point across.

“Like you were aware that not every rich person is Victorian or English?”

“I don’t like you.”

Rin dramatically put his hand over his heart and made slight noises of pain, “Ow! That hurts. I’m offended, betrayed, hurt, saddened. I though we were really getting along. I guess not!”

He quickly covered his eyes as sniffles began to rack his body. Shoko managed not to laugh at the sight of the ridiculously fake fit of tears Rin had decided to go with. Not even a parent would dare to believe those and, if they did, she’d really begin to question how competent they were as parents.

Shoko’s face lit up with amusement, “You know you’re seriously fooling no one with that bullshit, right?” At that Rin instantly stopped his seemingly terminal onslaught of crocodile tears and looked directly into her eyes.

“It was worth a shot.” He shrugged.

“You’re such a drama queen. Jesus Christ.” She laughed.

“Nice to know you think so highly of me.”

“I will hurt you.”

“You know, threats are kind of mean. I might just go to a teacher and report you for bullying. Who knows the emotional trauma that will affect me years from now!” Rin dramatically remarked as he put his palm against his forehead to emphasise his point.

Shoko snorted, “I’m sure you’d manage. Although you may not be able to forget the Great Shoko Mazaki!” She concluded putting her fist into the air.

Silence remained between the two as their words settled between them. That was until they looked each other’s eyes. In that moment they both knew they were goners. The laugher started out slow. Steady and controlled. By the time they were done they were releasing hearty laughs and clutching their stomachs from the laughter.

“And you call me a drama queen!” Rin wheezed out.

Shoko let a out a stuttered huff, “Takes one to know one.”

She knew it wasn’t normal how they both were acting. It was too hysterical, to relaxed and too comfortable for the conversation, especially since it was between two strangers. But, that didn’t matter, because she couldn’t remember that last time she enjoyed herself so much. She looked up to Rin and smiled. It was a thankful smile, no more, no less. He couldn’t possibly understand the weight of that gesture and he didn’t need to, because to Shoko it didn’t matter. The laughter sounded like hope and hope was something she had sworn to never accept into her life ever again, but right now, she found herself making an exception and didn’t even think twice about it.

“What?”

Shoko shook her head slightly, now calm and free of any excited jitters that had finally vacated her body, “Nothing, “ She rubbed her forehead, “Just tired.”

He nodded at her, “Yeah me too. Just a shame we’ve got all this homework.” He ended on a disgusted note.

She waved her hand, “Fuck that. I’m doing it tomorrow.”

“You know for one of the top students at this school, you’re not being very top-studenty.” Rin stated with a slight quirk of his eyebrow.

Shoko turned around, ready to head back into her room, “I may be a top student, but that doesn’t mean I don’t procrastinate, or need a really nice, comfy, heavenly, majestic, enticing, breath-taking sleep.”

“Oh, that wasn’t hinting at all.”

Shoko turned and smiled at him, “No, not at all” she laughed lightly,” Night, Rin.”

He smiled back at her as he removed himself off the wall, ready to head back to his own room, “Night, Shoko.”

She was just about to step into her room when she heard Rin’s voice call out once more.

“Hey, before you go to sleep.” He fidgeted slightly. “I wanted to ask if you were still wanting to meet up tomorrow?” Rin gave a small smile as he looked at her and waited her respond.

Shoko’s smile grew slightly wider, “Definitely!”

His grew too at her response, “Yeah? Uh… cool I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“Goodnight, Rin.”

“Yeah… uh… goodnight.”

Shoko walked back into her room and closed the door behind her, head shaking in amusement at the boy down the hall.

\-------------

Sitting down on her bed, clad in pyjamas, Shoko fiddled with the key in her hands, twisting it back and forth over her fingers and stoking it with her thumb.

The key was once bright golden, now, after years of abuse, it had become dulled, dented and scratched, its ethereal beauty, now broken into something rougher, more man-made – more human in its flaws. At the top of the key lay a deep-red ruby that seemed to glow in the centre. It had fallen out more times than she could count. The endless amounts of superglue used to keep the two pieces together must have been enough to fill at least a skip. It was a ridiculous necessity as her mother’s key would not work unless it was whole – _alive._

It was the most sacred thing she owned and likely ever would. She needed to keep it safe at all costs, never let it fall into the wrong hands and, preferably, keep the people who knew of existence to a minimum.

Sighing, Shoko felt the tight grasp of slumber pull her downwards, begging her to give into the darkness she so craved. She ignored it briefly opting to putting away the key first, leaving it in the one place she knew no one would ever check to find.

She lifted up her shirt, exposing her bare ribcage. She pressed they key against her side, shivering as the cold metal made contact with her skin. Slowly, she let her fingertips illuminate into a blinding light that quickly spread across her entire hand as if it were wildfire. Leaning the light into the key, she could slowly feel the item fade away from her as she applied more and more pressure into her side. It wasn’t long before it was gone completely, as if it never existed in the first place.

All that was left was an image of the key embedded into her skin as if it were nothing more than a simple tattoo.

Letting her shirt slide down, Shoko allowed the light to seep back into the abyss once more, leaving the room in darkness again.

Smiling slightly, she lay down and tucked herself under the covers, thinking of what tomorrow may bring – what the future would and for the first time, she found she wasn’t stunted by the crippling fear that seemed to plague her every move.

Even if she was still slightly scared and paranoid…

…at least she could finally look forwards and feel even the tiniest amount of hope.

And that was enough for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for making your way through this!
> 
> I don’t know when the next chapter will be, but there will be one.
> 
> Please leave a comment and tell me what you think, if you have any questions, or feedback. I’m open to all kinds of feedback and love hearing what you guys think!
> 
> Until next time.
> 
> -Live long and prosper.

**Author's Note:**

> So there’s the fist chapter/prologue! Man am I excited for this. Next chapter will see Shoko at True Cross and will just jump straight into things. I can’t wait for her to meet everyone!
> 
> Anyways please leave a comment as the really help me figure out what’s good, what’s bad and gives me so much motivation and inspiration for the next chapters!
> 
> Until next time...
> 
> -Live long and prosper.


End file.
